The End and the Beginning
by jacquie.s.b0634
Summary: After "The Office" is finished, our planet is invaded by strange outsiders. Aliens trigger an apocalypse, and our favorite characters must struggle to survive. MOVED OVER TO AO3: /works/25291699/
1. Chapter 1 - The Elevator

***DISCLAIMER* I do not own ****_The Office _****or NBC. It would be so cool if I did though. :)**

**I hope you enjoy this and it brings you great pleasure. That's what she said.**

**The End and the Beginning - Chapter One: The Elevator**

The sky was full of clouds that day. It was as if there was something disastrous about to happen. However, by "disastrous", most of the residents of Scranton, Pennsylvania assumed that it would rain, or something equally trivial. Little did they know… it would be the end of the world as they knew it.  
Dwight K. Schrute, the regional manager of Dunder Mifflin, Scranton, was driving to work one day with his wife, Angela Schrute. Angela turned the car mirror towards her and began to brush her hair.

"The car mirror is not for vanity, Angela," said Dwight, turning the mirror back to the road. "Its only purpose is to prevent us from crashing into incoming vehicles behind us."

"Oh please," said Angela, rolling her eyes. "I got up at 7:30 today. I didn't have time to brush my hair."

"Didn't you used to keep a mirror in your purse?"

"Whatever. I'll just wear a hat."

############################

Meanwhile, miles away, Jim and Pam Halpert were packing their belongings, as they were on their way to move to Austin. Pam was busy filling a box with toiletries when she felt her phone buzzing. She took it out and her face fell.

"What is it, Pam?" asked Jim, noticing her troubled expression.

Pam sighed. "The flight got cancelled. There's not another one for a week."

Jim shrugged. "That's not so bad. We have an extra week to finish packing."

"I suppose so. We could drop in and say good-bye to or co-workers today."

"Good idea. I'll go get the kids."

############################

Dwight and Angela arrived at the office about half an hour later and walked into the elevator.

"Hold the door." said Jim. He, Pam, and their two kids, Cece and Philip, quickly entered.

"Jim? Pam? What are you doing here?" asked Dwight.

"The flight was cancelled," explained Pam. "We wanted to say good-bye to everyone."

Angela smiled. "And you brought your children. How nice."

Jim nodded. "Yes. We didn't want to leave them home alo-"

Just then, the elevator came to a sickening halt, and the lights flickered off. "What's going on!?" Angela asked, panicking. The elevator started to shake violently, and the kids began to cry.

"That doesn't seem normal…" said Pam nervously. The elevator dropped rapidly, still shaking. Angela screamed wildly.

"STAY CALM, EVERYONE! STAY CALM!" yelled Dwight. The elevator stopped dropping and violently tumbled onto its side, thrusting them to the other side of the elevator. "STAY CALM EVERYONE!" repeated Dwight. "I AM PREPARED FOR THIS!" Dwight took out a flashlight and shined it onto the doors above them, and then took out a knife and started to pry them open.

"Wait, Dwight, stop," said Jim, pulling Dwight away from the doors. "Do you hear that?"

Everyone in the elevator listened, and sure enough, they heard screaming beyond the elevator. Loud, banging noises filled their ears, as if they were amid war. Cece started crying loudly, and Dwight moved the light of the flashlight over to her. She was clutching her leg in pain.  
"Cece, are you okay?" asked Jim, kneeling beside her. Cece removed her hand to reveal a bloody scrape.

"It hurts, daddy…" said Cece, tears rolling down her cheek.

"I think I have some Band-Aids in my purse," said Pam, searching her bag.

Dwight scoffed. "Band-Aids? Wow, mother of the year, Pam. You need to stop the bleeding, clean the wound, and then bandage. Geez." Dwight continued trying to pry open the door, but it wouldn't budge.

"I think there's something blocking it," said Jim. "You can't open it by yourself."

"Well, obviously, I'm the only one that cares that we will die if we stay in here, Sherlock!"

Jim stood up and proceeded to push on the door, attempting to dislodge the blocker from the door. After almost thirty minutes of pushing and prying, they managed to slide the door open.

"Okay," said Dwight, turning to the others. "I'm going to peek out and see what's going on. I'm mostly concerned about Phillip. But he's a Schrute, of course, so he knows to go to the shelter. I'm going to go find all the supplies I can, and then we can go there. I'll have to turn off this flashlight in order to save battery for the night. Jim, give me a boost."

Jim hoisted Dwight up to the door crack, and Dwight wiggled through until his entire upper body was poking out. After a few seconds, he jumped down and looked at the rest of them, troubled.

"How bad is it, Dwight?" asked Pam, cradling a fussy Phillip in her arms.

"Everything's gone," said Dwight. "It's all gone. Someone's bombing Scranton to the ground."


	2. Chapter 2 - The Rubble

"Why Scranton?" asked Jim. "It just doesn't make sense."

Angela wrapped her arms around Dwight's arm and looked up at him pleadingly. "Don't go out there alone, D. I'll come with you."

"It's dangerous out there. I won't let you. But I need to go get Phillip."

Tears rolled down Angela's cheek as she sat back down on the ground. Jim cleared his throat and looked at Dwight. "I'll go," he volunteered. "The women and children are safer here, anyway."

Pam shook her head quickly. "Don't go, Jim. I don't know what we'll do if something happened to you… I'll go instead."

"You're safer here," replied Jim. "If the elevator wasn't affected by the bombings, I don't think you'll be. Besides, the children need you."

Dwight rolled his eyes. "You two love each other too much. I swear… Jim, are you coming or not?"

Cece and Phillip pulled on Jim's pant leg desperately. "Don't go, daddy!" they begged. "Please, don't go!"

Jim hesitated, but eventually turned to Dwight and said, "I'm going. Dwight shouldn't go by himself, and he probably won't be able to carry much back to the shelter anyway. I'm sorry, guys."

Jim turned to Pam and gave her a kiss on her cheek. "I'll be okay, I promise," he said, and Pam smiled weakly. Jim ruffled Phillip's hair and grinned. "I'll be back before you know it. Don't worry."

With that said, Jim and Dwight each hoisted themselves up through the doors and climbed out of the cramped elevator. Jim looked up and felt his spirits drop. Buildings as far as he could see were demolished, nothing but a pile of rubble. Some were on fire, slowly burning to the ground. What was once the office was just debris, scattered about. He tried to remember just half an hour ago when Scranton was a happy, full town, with people going to work and minding their own business. Now it was a dump – a ruin. Forgotten forever. Jim looked up at the sky, and saw vessels overhead, hovering aimlessly like vultures over a carcass.

"Wow. You weren't kidding, Dwight," said Jim. Dwight nodded and began to dig through the wreckage. "What are we looking for again?" asked Jim.

"Supplies. I kept many in this very office. Guns, machetes, matches, canned food, bottled water, first aid kits, sleeping bags… I think we should scrap together enough to last the four of us – plus the kids… I'd say a month or two, maybe even three if we ration. And adding together the supplies at my shelter… that could be six months, or even a year if we're careful."

"You came really prepared for the apocalypse. Hey, who's that?"

Dwight dug up a dusty duffel bag from underneath a fallen chair and looked where Jim was pointing. Three figures emerged from the wreck and began walking slowly towards the pair. As they came closer, their silhouettes began to become recognizable.

"Is that Oscar and Erin?" asked Dwight. "How did they survive, of all people?"

"They must have found shelter from the bomb. We had the elevator to shield us."

As the three people approached Jim and Dwight, Erin had a noticeably troubled look in her eyes.

"Jim! Dwight! It's so good to see you…" she said. "Pete's trapped under the rubble!"

"We're busy," said Dwight. "We need to go-"

"Where is he?" asked Jim. Erin pointed to where a huge pile of rubble lay. Jim ran in the direction she pointed and began to dig through the rubble. Eventually, he came across Pete, covered in dust and scrapes. "You okay, Pete?" he asked, holding out his hand to him.

Pete coughed and nodded, as Jim hoisted him out of the rubble.

"Jim, we shouldn't get sidetracked," said Dwight. "My main focus is protecting my family, and I can't do that with you getting distracted."

"Seriously, Dwight? He could have died if we left him in there!"

"Not my concern. Some of us actually care about our children."

"You really think I don't? Is that how low I am to you? God. You have a first-aid kit?"

Dwight sighed, took out a red box from his duffel bag and tossed it to Jim. Jim caught it and started examining Pete. Pete's leg was covered in blood and he had a deep wound, and it looked dangerously prone to infection. Jim opened the box and took out a gauze pad. He turned to Erin and said, "Okay, so what I want you to do is to apply pressure to Pete's leg for twenty minutes. Then clean the wound and bandage it with these. Over there, under the debris, you'll find a stranded elevator. Inside are Pam and Angela, and my kids. Tell them we sent you, and they'll let you in to recover. Oh, and take the kit with you."

Erin grinned. "Thank you so much! You're a lifesaver, Jim. Literally."

Dwight shouldered his duffle bag and cleared his throat. "Oscar, are you injured?"

"Surprisingly, no," replied Oscar. "I guess I'm lucky."

"Okay," said Dwight. "You come with us. We need someone to help carry things. I'm going to my farm to go pick up my son, and we're looking for as many supplies as we can find before then."

Oscar nodding and the trio searched through the rubble, looking for any materials that Jim and Dwight might have missed before. In the next few minutes, they found a few more duffel bags and a surprisingly large assortment of weapons.

"So… how are we planning to get to your farm?"


	3. Chapter 3 - The Truck

Meanwhile, inside the elevator, Pam and Angela were sitting anxiously on the ground (well, technically the wall, because the elevator was on its side), staring up at the doors. Pam held fussy Phillip in her arms, rocking him gently. Cece had her arms wrapped around Pam's shoulders, squeezing tightly. Angela sat in another corner of the elevator, glaring judgmentally at the disgruntled children. She fiddled nervously with her crucifix, muttering a quick prayer under her breath.

Just then, the women heard a rapid knock from outside. Angela and Pam leapt up eagerly.

"Who is it?" asked Pam, craning her neck to get a glimpse of the knocker through the crack of the doors. "Jim?"

"It's me, Erin!" the knocker replied, peeking through the doors. "Jim said you guys would be here. I have Pete here, but he's bleeding out. He was trapped under the rubble. Can I come in?"

"Oh… okay. Just… let me help you open the doors a little bit." Pam pried open the doors carefully and stepped aside to let Erin and Pete crawl in.

Erin smiled and nodded to Pam as she helped to carry Pete into the elevator. "Thanks, Pam. Oh, it's dark in here!" Erin giggled nervously.

"Yes, it's dark," said Angela passive-aggressively. "The power cut off when this elevator was _thrown out the building."_

Erin looked down at her feet. "Oh. Hey, do you guys know what's going on? 'Cause I don't. I was just sitting at my desk, minding my own business, when I heard this loud… noise from outside. It was like… like a gun, or cannon, and it was _loud. _Like… _neeeeeuuuuuuuu BOOM!" _Erin mimed an explosion with her hands. "Everyone then crowds in front of the door, but I get a call on the phone, so I pick it up, but I hear nothing. Just… heavy breathing. The lights go off, I hear glass shattering, and this big, loud light appears out of nowhere… next thing I know, I'm in a pile of rubble."

"Dwight said it was a bomb of some sort." Explained Pam, pushing the doors together again.

Erin's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "Is it South Korea!? Are they finally nuking us?"

Pete, who was finally coming to, looked up at Erin and shook his head slowly. "N…no. It's _North _Korea," He corrected. "South Korea are the good guys."

Erin wrinkled her eyebrows in confusion. "There's two Koreas?"

Angela rolled her eyes. "Why would there be a South Korea if there was no North Korea?"

Erin shrugged. "I dunno. Maybe there could be an East Korea. Or a West Korea."

"I don't think there's a West Korea…" replied Pam, rocking Phillip in her arms.

"Then why is there a North and South Korea?"

Pam knelt down before Erin and sighed. "Okay, Erin, let me explain this a bit more."

###############################

Jim, Dwight, and Oscar, each carrying their share of supplies, scanned the street, searching for transportation.

"This doesn't look like Scranton at all anymore." commented Jim, kicking a soda can on the asphalt.

"Whoever dropped the bomb got us pretty good." Remarked Dwight.

Oscar scoffed. "A bomb? That's what you think it is? Come on. Look around you. The explosions were too uneven. Some were big, and some were small. And a nuclear attack would focus on military bases, not insignificant towns like Scranton. Not to mention, there were a _lot _of explosions. I highly doubt any country would hoard so many bombs, especially if they left behind so many survivors behind."

Dwight nodded slowly. "As disappointed as I am to admit, you're right. But what else could it be?" Just then, the trio came across a small crater. In the middle, a sizzling rock lay.

"A meteor," observed Jim. "It's not a bomb."

Dwight gasped sarcastically. "Wow, Jim, I had no _idea _that was a meteor! Thank you so much for pointed that out. False. I do not thank you. And I knew it was a meteor. I'm not a child."

"But why did the meteor set fire to buildings that aren't close to the site of impact?" Oscar pointed out. "There must be multiple meteors. At least a dozen."

"And," added Jim, "There aren't that many meteors on a path to Earth right now. Something must have redirected them. They're not hitting open space… just buildings. Or where they used to be." Jim gestured to the crater.

Dwight's face grew red, clearly, he was angry that Jim and Oscar figured everything out before he did. Oh well. They didn't really know _everything. _Dwight could come up with his own theories. "Still, it doesn't matter," he remarked. "I – I mean, _we _need to find something to get to my farm before –"

"Oh, look, a truck," interrupted Jim, pointing to a red pickup truck across the street. "And in plain sight, too. I'm surprised you didn't see that before, Dwight." Jim smirked at Dwight and Oscar chuckled softly as they walked triumphantly over to the truck. As they got closer, they noticed that it was very dirty, and missing a door. The windows were shattered, and there was but one occupant – a speckled coonhound puppy, sitting patiently in the passenger's seat.

"Shoo!" growled Dwight, but the puppy just stayed put and wagged its tail.

"Aw, Dwight, you wouldn't leave a poor, innocent animal all alone, would you?" asked Jim. "Let it come with us. The key's in, so Oscar can drive. We'll sit in the back," Dwight was about to object, but Oscar took the front seat and Jim opened the door to the backseats. "You're a good man, Dwight," Jim patted Dwight on his back. "Thank you so much for all you've done for us."


	4. Chapter 4 - The Bag

Jim, Dwight, and Oscar sat in the truck, as they drove to Schrute Farms. Dwight was annoyed, to say the least. A puppy was riding shotgun in a truck that _Jim _found, and _Jim _had the duffel bag of weapons, and _Jim _had been purposely provoking Dwight all day. At any other time, Dwight wouldn't have really minded, but now, in the apocalypse, Jim still was there, and Dwight was taking him to his shelter, going to provide for _Jim. _Jim and his precious wife Pam, his precious, _perfect _children, and why? Jim had virtually no skills to offer, unless encasing items in Jell-O was a useful skill in their current situation. Dwight always despised Jim, but eventually they became friends. Now, Jim was back to his old, jerky self, and Dwight could not stand it.

"Oh, look, they didn't get the Chili's," said Jim, interrupting Dwight's thoughts. "Who's hungry? Oh well, we can stop on the way back."

"Jim, shut your face," grumbled Dwight. "This isn't your personal holiday. This is the obliteration of all mankind."

"Right, 'cause we're not humans. Everyone has been obliterated."

"Well–"

"Maybe this is just a dream you're having. Or I'm having. We can never be sure."

"I am going to _kill _you, Jim."

"No you're not. I have the weapons." Jim held up his duffel bag with pride.

"You shouldn't have those. Give them to me."

"Say please. And promise not to kill me."

"Fine, I won't kill you. Now give me the bag."

"Say please, Dwight," Jim shook the bag tauntingly. Dwight reached for the bag, but Jim quickly snatched it away. "Oops, too slow."

Dwight glared at Jim menacingly and grabbed the handle of the bag, but Jim still didn't let go. "Give… me… the… bag!" barked Dwight between clenched teeth.

"Not until you say please."

"FOR GOD'S SAKE, JIM, GIVE ME MY BAG!"

"That's _it!" _said Oscar sternly. "You guys are both grown men, but you're acting like babies. Jim, stop provoking Dwight. It's not funny! Dwight, stop overreacting. It doesn't matter who has the bag!"

"It does!" argued Dwight. "_He _started it. Make him give me my bag!"

"I. Don't. Care. Who. Has. The. Bag."

Dwight's nostrils flared angrily. "I don't _trust _him with the bag. It contains deadly weapons!"

Oscar sighed. "Whatever. Jim, give him the bag. I just want this to be over."

Jim slowly handed the bag to Dwight and muttered something under his breath.

"What did you say!?" demanded Dwight.

"Nothing."

"False. You said something. I demand you disclose it!"

All of a sudden, Jim's face turned from amused to serious as he looked out the car window. "Hey, Oscar?" he asked. "Can you pull over for just a sec?"

Oscar stopped the car and Jim opened the car door to peek outside. "What is it?" asked Dwight. The puppy began to growl.

"I… I don't know. I'll take that." Jim took the bag of weapons back from Dwight.

"Hey!"

Jim ignored him and exited the truck, quickly followed by Oscar and Dwight. Outside, they saw an old convenience store, but some of its walls had collapsed. Parked right outside the store was a strange looking metallic vehicle, shaped like a bear paw lying on the ground. It was about the size of a small studio apartment, and had bright, yellow lights on each "claw".

Before any of the men could comment on this unusual find, Jim felt a tug on his shirt that almost made him jump. He turned around to see Andy Bernard.

"Hey, Tuna." Said Andy in a low whisper.

"A-Andy!" said Jim, who was shocked, to say the very least. "What're you doing here?"

"No time to explain… must hide… they're everywhere…" replied Andy, and Jim noticed that he was trembling and sweating profusely in fear.

Andy wasn't questioned as he pulled along Jim and Dwight (followed by Oscar) into the convenience store. They crouched down behind a shelf stocked with snack foods and peeked through the ledges. Three tall silhouettes – one shorter, one medium, and one tallest – patrolled the store in front of the freezers, each carrying a strange-looking object that resembled a weapon. Unfortunately, the power had gone out, so it was almost impossible to see the figures' faces from a distance. They each appeared to be wearing some sort of bulky armor. One of the figures turned to another and started hissing some bizarre language.

**_"_****_Kss eliss mun… tss gur…" _**hissed the smallest one to the tallest. The tallest slapped him – well, or she, or it – with a long, lanky arm and towered over it in a seemingly angry manner.

**_"_****_Mun! Eliss mun!" _**replied the tallest in a menacing growl. **_ "Rass mun wss! Umiss dast!"_**

Andy craned his neck around a box of cookies to look at the figures. "Oh my god…" he whispered under his breath.

"What is it?" chorused Jim, Dwight, and Oscar, so Andy moved aside so they could see them.

A light from the freezers flickered on just long enough to see their faces clearly – and they were no ordinary faces. Each creature was and ugly greenish gray color, and had two bulging yellow eyes poking out from the side of their head. Their jaws protruded forward, and they had huge, moldy fangs. They didn't resemble any creature found on Earth.

"Aliens!" muttered Dwight. "I _knew _it… I _knew _they would find us…" Just then, Andy pushed Dwight aside so he could get another look, but Dwight wouldn't budge.

"Dwight, can you move?" whispered Andy. "I just need to –"

"Silence, idiot!" hushed Dwight. "Do you want to get cau – " Suddenly, Andy accidently pushed a can of chips of the rack, and it hit the ground with an echoing _CLUNK. _The group peeked nervously at the creatures, and their hearts almost stopped when they saw their horrible yellow eyes staring right in their direction. The tallest one's lips curled a grin, showing off his awful, pointed fangs.


End file.
